


Bright Eyes

by orphan_account



Category: Homestuck, MSPaint Adventures
Genre: Coolkid/Blindkid swap, F/M, Gen, Highschool AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2011-01-07
Updated: 2011-01-07
Packaged: 2017-10-14 13:10:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/149543
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Terezi is the coolest of coolkids. Dave is blind. Karkat's life is shitty.</p><p>Honestly, just read it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. In Which There Is Theft

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a picture by Kassiopeia/Aeromachia/that awesome person who paints pretty things.
> 
> HSAUs suck, I know. Read it anyway?

She can't take her eyes off of him.

From the moment she walks into her first class, she can't look away.

It's not like he's a particularly fine specimen of pubescent manhood - reddish blond hair, slim build, clothes too dark for his complexion (and wouldn't Kanaya be tickled at that, Terezi criticizing someone else's fashion) and heavy black glasses over his eyes. She doesn't think he notices her peeking at him - he doesn't look back, at least she doesn't think so. Then again, he could be shooting her a death glare behind those shades and she'd never know.

Stupid stupid dumb. Cool girls like Terezi do _not_ stare at weird guys in their algebra class. No matter how oddly fascinating they are. She sighs, pushing back her own red shades to scrub her eyes. This jet-lag is getting to her something awful. Yeah. That's it. Jet-lag. She's tired, that's why she keeps staring like an idiot.

That's not even convincing in her head.

She wants to put her head down on the desk, but the asshole teacher is paying _extra special attention_ to the _extra special transfer student._ Bluh. It's not like she needs it - she learned all this last year. Balancing equations is not that hard, dumbasses. Suck it up and quit bitching that your calculator won't tell you the answer.

The bell rings - _finally_ \- and she stands, stretching. She gathers her books and tosses one last, nonchalant glance at the boy in the corner. And does a double-take.

He slips his books into his bag - and pulls out what looks like a handful of white sticks - and unfolds them into one long cane - and taps his way down the aisle and out the door. He never glances left or right, just keeps his face straight ahead and tipped slightly down.

 _He's blind?!_

\-----

The blind boy is in two more of her morning classes, and her lunch period. A pretty blonde girl slips her arm into the crook of his elbow (and _oh,_ Terezi _aches_ when she sees him smile) and leads him over to a table with a boy and girl who seem to be in a competition for nerdiest brunette.

Terezi considers going over and taking an empty seat at their table, but dismisses the idea almost immediately. Cool kids do not go begging for friends, they are the ones who get begged. She finds an empty table instead, positioning herself so she can just see him out of the corner of one eye.

It's only as she's unpacking her lunch that the homesickness kicks in. She'd packed potato chips, out of habit, even though she only ate them when she used them to snag ranch dressing from Kanaya's salad. And chocolate milk, just to see Tavros's face scrunch up (really, who gets grossed out by chocolate milk?). And she'd swap half her ham and cheese sandwich for half of Karkat's peanut butter and jelly.

She could get ranch dressing from the salad bar, and chocolate milk was good no matter who she was with, and she could make whatever sandwich combinations she wanted tomorrow. But it wasn't the same.

She _misses_ Alternian High. Misses doing math with Sollux, and copying history off of Aradia, and how Vriska could manipulate the teachers - even Mr. Slick - into doing almost anything she wanted. She misses how dark and gloomy it is back home - it's too bright here, too warm, the air too dry. Goddamn mom and her goddamn job making her move out to this goddamn city, and forcing Terezi to go to goddamn Skaian Academy. This sucks.

She tears into her sandwich, and squeezes her eyes shut so the tears don't burn their way out. Times like this her shades come in handy.

\-----

She wasn't staring at him all through her last class, and she definitely isn't -

"I'm blind, not deaf or stupid. Quit following me."

God fucking dammit. "I'm not following you, touchy. I just happen to live in this direction." But she takes the opportunity to catch up to him anyway.

He's smirking, just slightly. "Whatever. You're the new kid, right? Terri... Traci..."

"It's Terezi."

"That's it. I'm Dave."

"Nice to meet you, Dave." They walk on in awkward silence for a while.

He breaks it first. "So how do you like Skaian?"

She hefts her bag higher on her shoulder. "Hate it."

He laughs and her heart skips a beat. "Ouch, that's harsh! You've been here all of one day!"

"So? I can still hate it." She resists the urge to stick her tongue out - it'd be extremely uncool, and he wouldn't see it anyway.

"How's that?"

So she tells him, in excruciating detail, about every single way his school, his city, and his life is infinitely less awesome than the one she left behind. They stop walking and he leans against a handy wall, idly folding up his cane and smiling slightly at her rant. And maybe she's exaggerating, just a bit, but it's worth it when he chuckles at some wisecrack about the sun.

Fuck on a Friday, she's pathetic.

She pauses for breath, and he takes his first chance to respond. "It's really not that bad, you know."

Stabbing glares really doesn't work on blind people, she's beginning to learn. "Which part, the heat or the classes or the fact that everyone I care about is three thousand miles away?"

"Actually, I was talking about the sun."

It takes her a moment. Then, "... oh, wow, did you really just go there?" Her coolness facade, which was already cracked by his presence, is utterly shattered.

"I really just went there. Now, what are you going to do about it, Miss Sooo Cooool?" That grin somehow makes her heart stop and her blood pump faster at the same time.

She takes barely a second to decide before leaning in close. "This," she whispers, snatching off his glasses.

Red eyes. He has red eyes, and they're beautiful. They widen but don't focus. "Hey, not cool. Give those back." He reaches in her direction, but she's already skipped back.

"No way. They look better on me anyway." They do, she decides, admiring her reflection in the side of a parked car. Coolness re-established.

"Seriously, Terezi, my bro gave me those, now can I please have them back." He's reaching in the direction of her voice, and his fingers just brush her shoulder before she gets out of the way again, suppressing a thrill of excitement.

"No, I don't think so." But she takes pity on him - really, how could she not? - and presses her own red glasses into his hand. "Here, you can have my old ones." Their fingers brush, and she shivers despite the heat.

Okay, definitely time to get out of here before someone does something they'll regret in the morning. She pulls back and jogs down the street, calling "See you tomorrow, Dave!" over her shoulder.

Smooth one, Pyrope. Really, good job on that one.

\-----

Dave listens to her retreating footsteps (smacking the concrete, probably expensive sneakers, god what a poser). He considers chasing after her, but she's already out of earshot.

"Bitch."

His fingers trace the edges of her glasses. Pointy, frameless. Probably really girly. But he feels naked without something covering his eyes, so he slips them on and unfolds his cane. He's barely walked ten feet before he hears his bro's car (the engine has a distinct sound, he's got the exact pitch and rate of its growl memorized, and he could probably find it ten blocks away in a strange city during rush hour) and it pulls up beside him. Door opens and shuts, "hey lil' bro, what's with the shades?" Dave slips his bag off his shoulder and feels it taken, tossed in the backseat.

He sets a hand on the side of the car and walks around to the passenger seat. "Just some shit at school." Pop open the door, slip inside, don't bang your head and keep that cane out of the way. "What're you doing here?"

His bro flops back into the driver's seat with a grunt. "Had shit to do, figured I'd give you a ride home. Got groceries in the back." That explained the rustle when Dave's backpack had been tossed there. "I'm not getting you new shades."

"Won't have to, I'll get 'em back tomorrow." Dave sighs and leans his head back against the seat. "Is this shit you have to do a few hours' worth or a few days', 'cause I think Mrs. B's gonna call the cops if you disappear for a week again."

"Just a few hours." A sigh. "And I'm sorry about that. If this goes right I won't have to go away anymore."

"Whatever."

Silence, and Dave can feel his bro's stare.

"Those look good on you. Where'd you get 'em?"

"Oh shut the hell up."

Laughter, and all's right with the world again.

Except for the girly shades.

\-----

And he's alone at home again. Bro helped haul in the groceries and stick them in the fridge, then he headed out again. "Don't set anything on fire until I get back, okay?"

"Aww, come on Bro, how come you never let the blind kid play with matches unsupervised?" His bro laughs and ruffles Dave's hair (and he knows he hates that, the asshole) and then he's gone again.

Dave sighs and heads for his room, only tripping over a puppet once - Bro's pretty good about keeping those things off the floor and out of the way, but no one's perfect. Dave can't remember the last time he sat on the couch without having to pull a plush _something_ out from under his ass, and he really doesn't want to know what that _something_ is.

But he makes it to his room okay, and boots up his computer, checking if any of his friends are online.

Morgan Freeman notes that ectoBiologist is online, and Dave takes a moment to chuckle before he opens a chat. He loves his text-reader.

[Open Pesterlog]  
\-- turntechGodhead (TG) began pestering ectoBiologist (EB) --

TG: hey bro  
EB: dave! you're home early!  
TG: yeah my bro gave me a ride  
EB: nice! wish i had a brother sadface  
TG: no you dont your dads awesome  
TG: anyway thats not what i wanted to talk to you about  
TG: what do you know about the new girl  
EB: not much... she's from some tiny town no one's ever heard of  
EB: apparently she's really really smart - she's in all honors  
EB: kinda cute, but not really my type  
TG: no shit  
TG: everyone knows you have the hots for lalonde  
TG: even the teachers are waiting for you two to hook up  
EB: shut up!  
EB: anyway...  
EB: the new girl sat all by herself at lunch  
EB: she didn't really talk to anyone all day  
TG: so what some kind of emo kid  
EB: no, not really! she seemed pretty cool  
EB: just like maybe she needed a friend  
TG: ...  
EB: that means you dave  
TG: what  
TG: why would i want to be friends with her  
TG: shes a straight-up bitch  
EB: really? you talked to her?  
TG: yeah she stalked me halfway home and stole my shades  
EB: :O  
EB: sorry surprised face  
EB: she really took your glasses?  
TG: yeah  
TG: left me with hers  
TG: please say theyre not girly please say theyre not girly  
EB: they looked pretty effeminate bro!  
TG: dammit  
TG: where do you even get these words  
TG: oh right your girlfriend  
EB: she is not my girlfriend!  
TG: only fooling yourself john  
EB: in  
EB: any  
EB: case  
EB: dot  
EB: dot  
EB: dot  
EB: are you gonna wear them to school tomorrow?  
TG: its either those or those pointy pieces of shit my bro wears  
TG: and you know how retarded those look  
EB: hers are pretty pointy too!  
TG: what color are they  
EB: red  
TG: ...  
TG: dammit  
TG: dammit  
TG: dammit  
TG: thanks bro  
TG: see you tomorrow  
EB: see you dave! lol

\--turntechGodhead (TG) ceased pestering ectoBiologist (EB) --

God fucking dammit.

\-----

Terezi shouldered her door open. "Mom? You around?" Silence.

There are still boxes everywhere. She drops her bag on one and wanders into the kitchen.

A note stuck to the fridge:

"Terezi-  
Out for work  
Got some food  
Do your homework  
<3 Mom"

She opens the fridge - yep. That nasty vegan shit Mom's always trying to get her to eat. She'll order a pizza later. One with _meat._

The memory of Mom's face last time she caught Terezi eating pepperoni makes her snicker. She grabs a lemonade - the only palatable thing in the fridge - and heads upstairs to her room.

Her bed is the only thing not in a box. She wades through the pile, looking for one in particular - there!

She pulls out her laptop and power cord, flopping onto the bed. Their internet's not set up yet, but their neighbor's isn't even password-protected. And Karkat's online, might as well let him know she's alive.

[Open Pesterlog]  
\-- gallowsCalibrator (GC) began trolling carcinoGeneticist (CG)

GC: H3Y K4RK4T  
CG: OH HEY. I GUESS YOUR PLANE DIDN'T CRASH OR ANYTHING?  
GC: 4PP4R3NTLY NOT  
GC: 4LTHOUGH 1T WOULD B3 PR3TTY 1NT3R3ST1NG 1F 1T H4D 4ND W3 W3R3 ST1LL H4V1NG TH1S CONV3RS4T1ON  
CG: GODDAMN, YOU NEED TO STOP TYPING LIKE THAT.  
CG: IT'S ANNOYING AS FUCK WAITING TWENTY MINUTES FOR YOU TO SAY ANYTHING  
GC: STFU V4NT4S  
GC: L1K3 YOUR W4Y 1S 4NY B3TT3R  
GC: M1ST3R SHOUTY MCSHOUTF4C3  
CG: NEWSFLASH, DOUCHETTE:  
CG: YOU DO THE SAME SHOUTY THING!  
GC: K4RK4T  
GC: DO YOU S33 TH1S TH1NG R1GHT H3R3  
GC: TH1S 1S TH3 FUCK 1 4M NOT G1V1NG FOR YOUR OP1N1ON  
CG: NO, I DON'T SEE YOUR RETARDED FIGURE OF SPEECH.  
CG: WE'RE THREE THOUSAND MILES APART.  
CG: FUCK  
CG: TEREZI, THIS SUCKS.  
GC: 1 KNOW 8(  
CG: I COULD REALLY HAVE GONE FOR SOME HAM-AND-CHEESE AT LUNCH TODAY.  
CG: WAIT  
CG: WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR GLASSES?  
CG: I THOUGHT THEY WERE B, NOT 8.  
GC: OH Y34H  
GC: 1 GOT N3W ON3S FROM TH1S W31RD K1D 4T MY SCHOOL  
GC: TH3YR3 B1G 4ND ROUND 4ND BL4CK  
GC: TH3Y LOOK SO SW33T 8D  
CG: I BET THEY LOOK LIKE SHIT ON THAT HIDEOUS ASS YOU CALL A FACE.  
GC: H3H3H3 LOV3 YOU TOO K4RKL3S <3  
CG: UGHHHH.  
CG: JUST TELL THE DRAGON-LADY HOW MUCH I HATE HER.  
CG: YOU KNOW, FOR MOVING YOU OUT TO THE  
CG: WHAT DID YOU CALL IT?  
GC: BL4Z1NG WH1TE 4SSHOL3 OF FUCK4LL, NOWH3R3  
CG: YEAH, THERE.  
GC: 1LL B3 SUR3 TO L3T H3R KNOW WH3N N3XT 1 S33 H3R  
GC: 1N TH3 M34NT1ME HOWS YOUR D4D  
CG: HE'S DOING OKAY.  
CG: LESS CRABBY THAN USUAL, WHICH IS, YOU KNOW...  
CG: WORRYING.  
GC: 8(  
GC: 1TS GONN4 B3 OK4Y K4RK4T  
CG: I HOPE SO.  
CG: OH SHIT, I DIDN'T REALIZE IT WAS SO LATE.  
CG: I HAVE TO GO STUDY FOR DROOG'S TEST FUCK FUCK FUCK.  
GC: OH SH1T YOUD B3TT3R GO DO TH4T  
GC: H3H3 4T L34ST 1 GOT OUTT4 TH3R3 B3FOR3 TH4T  
CG: YES, YOU'RE A LUCKY LITTLE SKANK AND WE ALL HATE YOU.  
CG: I HAVE TO GO, BUT WE'LL TALK LATER?  
GC: FOR HOOOOURS 8D  
GC: W3R3 GONN4 T4LK UNT1L TH3 SUN COM3S UP  
GC: MY T1M3  
GC: WH1CH M34NS YOULL B3 L4T3 FOR SCHOOL 4ND M1SS TH3 T3ST  
CG: IF ONLY.  
CG: LATER, TEREZI.  
GC: L4T3R K4RK4T

\--gallowsCalibrator (GC) ceased pestering carcinoGeneticist (CG) --

Terezi watches the screen until his handle goes dim, then closes the laptop and hugs it to her chest. God. She thought talking to someone would make the hole in her chest hurt less, not more.

She reaches over for the lemonade and chugs it to keep from crying. Dammit, Mom. Dammit, Karkat.

Dammit, Dave.


	2. In Which There Is Backstory

"Hey, you're Terezi, right?"

Terezi, sitting on her bag outside the door of the school, looked up from her half-done homework. "Who's asking?" The question was partly because she still only knew the name of one other student, partly for coolness and partly because she actually couldn't see a thing through Dave's glasses. Which was probably not a problem for the blind boy, but she looked too cool to care.

"I'm John Egbert. Dave's friend." It was the nerdy brunette boy Dave had sat with at lunch yesterday. He sat on the ground beside her.

"What can I do for you, John Egbert Dave's friend?"

"Give him back his shades."

"And why would I want to do that?"

"Because you really don't want to make enemies at this school. Especially enemies like Rose and Jade and me."

"Are you threatening me? What are you, student council or something?" He peered at her notebook, and she shut it with a snap. "I'm not afraid of you, Egbert."

He laughed, the arrogant ass. "No, I'm not threatening or anything, and we're nothing special. Just his friends. We take care of each other."

She kept her silence.

"And Rose can probably help you with that English homework."

Glaring through those shades really didn't work very well. "I don't need your stupid help." She yanked the glasses off and held them out to him. "Here, he can have his dumb glasses back if you people are going to be annoying about it."

John grinned. "Awesome!" But instead of taking the shades, he turned and called out, "Hey, Dave! She said okay!"

How can a blind kid in a bright red shirt with a cane be so sneaky? And yet there Dave was, just around the corner. "Yeah, John. I heard. Hey, Terezi." He was actually wearing her pointy red glasses.

She stood. "Hey, Dave." God this was awkward. "Here's your shitty shades." She shoved them at his chest, and snatched her own back.

"Thanks."

Terezi went for her bag before this situation got any more awkward, but John grabbed her elbow. _Apologize,_ he mouthed.

 _What?_

 _Say you're sorry, or else._ Something like that should really not be said with such a cheery smile.

Dave leaned on his cane. "I hate being left out of all the fun conversations."

Shooting dirty looks at the blind kid still wasn't working. _And in other news, sky blue, pope Catholic, bear shits in woods. Details at eleven._ Terezi sighed, as gustily and obnoxiously as possible. "Sorry for taking your shit and generally being a bitch. Whatever." The bell rang, and the school doors opened. She slung her bag over her shoulder and hauled ass before she could spontaneously combust from sheer awkwardness.

But before she was completely out of earshot, she heard, "Hey! Sit with us at lunch!"

Keep fucking dreaming, Egbert.

\-----

"Why would you say something like that, huh?" Dave's cane caught John on the back of the head with a _pap_.

"Ow!" He had surprisingly good aim. "Why not? She looked really lonely yesterday."

"And that's our problem how?"

"Dave, just because you got off on the wrong foot doesn't mean you can't _try_ to make friends."

"You watch too many shitty movies with unrealistic morals. She and I are never gonna be friends. The real world doesn't work that way, John."

"Oh, quit being such a pessimist. You never know - anything could happen! Come on, let's get to homeroom before the second bell rings."

\-----

There was no way in hell that she was going to sit there.

She was just going to take her seat at the same empty table.

No way she was going to go groveling to those assholes for acceptance.

Especially after that humiliation this morning.

She could always say she hadn't seen John waving at her.

Or heard him yell "Hey, Terezi! Over here!"

Or- oh fuck on French toast, he was coming over.

"Hey, Terezi! Didn't you hear me call?" Without waiting for an answer he grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the table, sitting her on the end across from Dave.

"You know Dave already" - cold silence from that sector - "and this is Rose" - the blonde girl, nose deeply buried in The Collected Works of H.P. Lovecraft - "and Jade." - who grinned brightly at Terezi.

"Hi, Terezi, nice to meet you!"

"... yeah." God, the awkward was thick enough to taste in the air. She opened her lunchbag and tore into the first thing she grabbed - her PB&J half-sandwich.

"... so! Why'd you move here! What was your old school like! How do you like Skaian so far!" It appeared that Jade spoke only in exclamation points.

"If our conversation yesterday was any clue, Alternian was perfect and this is hell." Dave quipped.

"It's true, Alty was the best. This place will never compare." Terezi sighed dramatically. "Sure, it's a nice little school if you like that sort of thing, but-"

"Oh, for fuck's sake! Two days! You've been here two days! You can't reasonably hate the school until you've been here a month, tops."

 _"'Reasonably?!'_ I'll give you 'reasonable' straight up your-"

"Sure, whatever, I'd love to see you try, you-"

"Really, David? You really have to turn this into a thing?" Rose licked her finger to turn the page. "You always pick these fights, and nothing ever comes of it."

Dave ran a hand through his hair. "Yeah, 'cause no one'll fight a blind kid. So I reserve my right to turn it into a thing, just for the illusion of some kind of conflict. That fits into your psychological profile of me, right?"

"Indeed it does, tweaked a bit."

"Good to know." He turned to Terezi. "Just you wait, she'll put together some kind of Freudian complex or obsessive fixation or some other bullshit for you. I give it a week before she's mapped out every single one of your neuroses.

Terezi snickered. "Well, I'm not-"

And then her phone rang.

The rest of the table gasped.

"What?"

"Quick, shut it off!" John flailed in panic. "If anyone hears it, it'll get taken away and you'll be in detention for a week!"

"What? That's retarded." She checked - it was Karkat. "Fuck." There was only one reason he'd call her in the middle of the school day.

She looked up at the pale faces around her. "It's an emergency, I have to answer."

"And here comes Scratch!" Jade moaned. "Vice Principal Scratch - he'll take it for sure!"

"Shit shit shit shit shit!"

Rose shut her book with a snap. "Terezi, get under the table. I'll deal with Scratch."

Terezi ducked, wedging herself between several pairs of knees. Rose's stood and disappeared, giving her a little more room and a lot less cover. And the goddamn phone was still ringing.

She answered. "Karkat, what happened?" No time to waste on pleasantries.

"He's gone. I came home from school and he was just gone. Terezi, I can't call the cops again, they'll take him away and put me in foster care, I can't let that happen!" Karkat was rambling, half-yelling, like he always did when he was afraid.

"Karkat, shut the hell up and calm down! I'm at school - if I get caught with my phone I'm fucked!"

"Fuck your phone, this is my fucking dad you bitch!"

"And I'm three thousand miles away!" she hissed. Then sighed, leaning back on someone's knees - Jade's, she thought. "Look, there's nothing I can do from here. Call Tavros, he can probably help find him. Equius too - I know you hate the guy, but if something goes wrong - well, you know. If you do get caught, call my mom - _not me,_ her. I know she'll help with whatever legal shit you might get into. And text me as soon as there's news."

He sighed, a blast of static in her ear. "Thanks, 'Rezi. I know there's not much you can do, I just-"

"-needed to talk before you had a full-blown panic attack. I get it." She hesitated, then - "Kanaya will want to help as soon as she hears, and Vriska might be useful too. Again, huge bitch bluh bluh, but you might need her."

"I'll keep that in mind. Talk to you later."

"Let me know as soon as you can." _Click._

John's concerned face appeared under the table. "It's safe, you can come out now."

She took the hand he offered and pulled herself out from under the table.

"I better have been brown-nosing Scratch for a good reason." Rose took her seat and gave Terezi a penetrating look over steepled fingers.

Terezi sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Thanks so much, it really was important."

"What was so important about a phone call?"

She really didn't want to get into this right now, but she owed them. If she blew them off, they could tell Scratch and get her phone taken anyway. "I have this... friend. Sorta. And his dad sometimes... gets into trouble. He got into trouble today, and my friend called asking for help."

"And that's it?" If skeptic looks were money this table would be filthy rich.

"That's it, really. Look, I gotta - I gotta go deal with stuff, okay? I'll see you later." She stuffed her forgotten lunch back into the bag and made her escape.

\-----

"So why don't you tell me the whole story." That was Dave, and that was not a question.

"How are you even following me? I don't know if you've noticed, but you're blind," she grumbled, neatly sidestepping the question.

"Really? I thought it was just the middle of the night. But back to your story." Dammit. "I know there was more going down than just normal 'getting in trouble', considering you offered up your mom for legal advice. So what's going on? Really?"

"It's rude to eavesdrop, you know."

"And it's bitchy to avoid the question. Talk." Damn him.

She sighed. "Look, can... can we sit down? Curb, three feet to your left." She took a seat, and he followed, settling their bags in the street in front of them.

And she began. "The first time it happened, I think we were seven or eight...

\-----

Me and Karkat lived next door to each other our whole lives. He was - still is - my best friend. We'd hang out at each other's houses, playing or watching movies or whatever.

His dad was always kind of angry. You know, not yelling or screaming, just pissy. All the time. He'd grumble if we were too loud, so we'd usually be at my house. But then one summer he changed. Stopped grumbling, started being real nice to me and Karkat - until that night.

It was really late, and Karkat came to the door. Mom let him in - he had blood all over his shirt and hands. He was scared shitless, kept talking about "Dad, he's hurt, he's all bloody, needs help". Mom had me help him get cleaned up while she called the cops. His dad had tried to kill himself - slit his wrists. With Karkat sleeping in the next room. If he hadn't got up to go pee, then... well, you get it.

I had never seen Karkat like that. He was catatonic - he wouldn't move unless you pulled him, and all he'd talk about was his dad. His eyes... Anyway, it was seriously freaky.

Karkat stayed with us for a few days while his dad was in the hospital. He wasn't allowed to visit, and we didn't see his dad again until a week later. He got called in to court - they were going to put him in a home, and stick Karkat in a foster home.

My mom stood up. She said she'd vouch for his dad, and she'd take care of Karkat if anything happened. Since she's a lawyer, they said okay.

And for a few years, everything was fine. His dad was on medication, he was back to being grumpy, everything was like it had been before. Until it wasn't.

Karkat, his dad, and me were out in the city. We were walking across a bridge, and all of a sudden he got up on the railing like he was about to jump. Just out of nowhere - one minute he was talking, laughing, the next we were trying to pull him back from the edge. Turns out he had run out of medication a few weeks ago, and didn't want to go refill the prescription.

He went back to the hospital, Karkat came back with us. And it was like that for a few years - every once in a while his dad would up and try to hurt himself, and we'd have sleepovers until he was better again. I know it sounds awful, but it was almost easier when his dad was gone. At least we knew where he was, that he was medicated, that he wouldn't be getting into trouble.

And this last year or two, he's been fine. Stayed on his meds - the pharmacy down the street lets Karkat sign for them, even though he's a kid - and he hasn't done anything dumb. And Mom got a really good job offer from a partnership here, and we all agreed that it - that he - was gonna be okay.

\-----

"But when Karkat called today, it was because his dad disappeared. Again." Dave sighed. "God, that home life is even more fucked up than mine."

"It's just about as fucked up as possible." Terezi ripped at a few blades of grass growing in a crack of the sidewalk. "So you get why it was kinda important for me to answer that call."

"Yeah, absolutely. And if anything happens to his dad, you and your mom aren't there to take him in."

"Exactly. So now I get to wait for his call and feel like shit for leaving." She hugged her knees to her chest. Dave reached out a hand to touch her shoulder, and she leaned into the touch unconsciously.

"This really sucks."

"Yeah."


End file.
